The Post-iPhone World
Like a whodunit mystery, everyone is trying to finger Apple’s next big device to pick up the baton from the iPhone. But like in Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, what if the guilty party is not any one single device?
The iPhone is a jack-of-all-trades device. Its audio doesn’t sound as good as real headphones, the screen isn’t as nice to work on as an iPad, the camera isn’t as a good as a real DSLR, and so on.
But what if Apple sees a modular future of connected devices that integrate into a single entity? A sort of eero-like mesh network on your body. What if the modular network IS the next big thing. This would be no small feat. Until Apple came along, nobody could even get Bluetooth headphones to communicate easily.
At this point, a lot of red flags probably go up for people who think, “The last thing I want is more devices to worry about!” After all, part of the appeal of the iPhone was that you only had to carry around one item. The only reason wearables have been able to sneak in the back door is because you don’t have to carry them.
But a modular network is a beautiful idea. You only need to worry about the devices that you are actually going to use. If all you want is the bare minimum of connectivity to the world, you could strap on your watch in the morning and be done with it. Or you could choose the audio and video options that match your activities for the day.
I still think the main “brains” of any network will migrate to the Apple Watch from the iPhone. The watch form factor beats the phone in many ways. Anyone who thinks that this can’t happen because the screen is too small is missing the point. The screen isn’t the iPhone’s value proposition. Connectivity and mobility are. If you like a 5" screen over augmented reality glasses or a 13" tablet, fine, you can still take that with you just like before.
The smartphone is so good at what it does that perhaps no other single device could ever dethrone its position. It’s going to take a group effort.
But what if Apple sees a modular future of connected devices that integrate into a single entity? A sort of eero-like mesh network on your body. What if the modular network IS the next big thing. This would be no small feat. Until Apple came along, nobody could even get Bluetooth headphones to communicate easily.
At this point, a lot of red flags probably go up for people who think, “The last thing I want is more devices to worry about!” After all, part of the appeal of the iPhone was that you only had to carry around one item. The only reason wearables have been able to sneak in the back door is because you don’t have to carry them.
But a modular network is a beautiful idea. You only need to worry about the devices that you are actually going to use. If all you want is the bare minimum of connectivity to the world, you could strap on your watch in the morning and be done with it. Or you could choose the audio and video options that match your activities for the day.
I still think the main “brains” of any network will migrate to the Apple Watch from the iPhone. The watch form factor beats the phone in many ways. Anyone who thinks that this can’t happen because the screen is too small is missing the point. The screen isn’t the iPhone’s value proposition. Connectivity and mobility are. If you like a 5" screen over augmented reality glasses or a 13" tablet, fine, you can still take that with you just like before.
The smartphone is so good at what it does that perhaps no other single device could ever dethrone its position. It’s going to take a group effort.
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